Failed Nursing Pathophysiology

[bigdreams01]

I ended the quarter with a D+ in my 3 credit Nursing Pathophysiology class that is not repeatable for credit. I just found out a few minutes ago and I'm not even upset about it because I feel like I gave up on getting anything more than a bachelor's degree that I barely scraped by to get.

I had an 84 on the first exam, a 66 on the second, and a 62 on the third. Ironically, I studied the most for the third exam and the class average was an 80-something. It turns out I was studying everything on the power point that was barely mentioned on the test. I never opened the textbook because I was naive and thought that everybody else got by without it. That was probably my big mistake. I also study alone all the time and I study almost every day up to 3 weeks before exams.

I have no idea how the course retake process works but honestly I thought I had more in me than this and it's so stupid for me to even think that I can go to grad school at all. My parents both went to med school and I can't even pass a damn 200 level class. All I do with my life is sit around and think I can do things when I really just don't know how to do it. What can I possibly do to make the best out of this situation?

[AliNajaCat]

1) Retake it anyway, just to show then you can, and freaking ace it.

2) Spend some quality time in the student study help lab, or whatever they call it at your college. see if they can diagnose your learning style and help you get your ship righted so you can sail straight

3) Read the dang books. Never mind what you think somebody else is doing. Do what's right for you.

[MiladyMalarkey, ASN, BSN]

In any sort of nursing/medical/science course, you HAVE to read the books. Patho is a challenging class even if you do read the text & take notes, have power points to study. You've recognized your error in hindsight, just don't repeat it. This isn't the end, dust yourself off & do it again.

[flufffyo1]

Do you know any of your classmates that did well? I suggest learning how they study and try it for yourself. At my school, we often go to upperclassmen to get advice on how to study for a particular class. It's been working great so far...

[SaltySarcasticSally, LPN, RN]

I don't agree that you have to read all of the books in any type of science class, you just need to read smarter not harder. It's all going to depend on your learning style but for me, textbook reading does not work for understanding information. I make an outline of all the big subjects included for one test. I do not read word for word, I read all the boxes, special font text, and first/last sentence of each major paragraph. I type notes as I do that but I do not take too many because I study by using concept maps and that's basically my note taking system. I also will use online resources like Khan Academy to give me a visual lesson of a difficult concept if needed. Concept maps work really well in my experience for classes like patho.

Obviously this style does not work for everyone but I would say sit down and make up a study guide for actually how to study and what has worked for you in the past. No biggie about having to re-take a class, do a grade preplacement if possible. When I took chem the first time, I was studying like you and it wasn't working. I dropped after I got a mid 60's on my first exam after weeks of studying. When I re-took the class the second time, I was prepared and got an easy A. Use this as a learning experience and move forward, you got this!

[umbdude, MSN, APRN]

Spend some time figuring out why you failed those tests first, then talk to your school about retake or re-enrolling. If that doesn't work, go somewhere else. For me, I always read the textbooks (I do skip and skim certain sections). I also did a lot of practice questions. Don't mull over one bad grade. If you do well going forward, you'll be able to get into grad school. Focus on now and how to turn things around.